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Evaluation of Social Media Approaches to Energize Extension Clients and Drive Future Landscape Conservation Practices
Laura Warner, Jamie Loizzo, and Jarred Shellhouse
Look
at
the
Fact
s?
Introduction
• UF/IFAS Extension professionals influence residential landscape water conservation
• group education • distance education such as webinars • individual consultations and site visits
• educational journalism (i.e., newspaper articles, etc.)
• education through social media
Social Media
• Social media has been proven to impact attitudes, beliefs and behaviors of individuals
• Audiences typically engage with social media posts that have an accompanying image
• Little is known about how coupling different message frames with images impact perceptions of engaging in water conservation
Message Framing
• How communication creators develop media content and how consumers understand it
• Message frames can be used to appeal to media consumers through interests/concerns
• Within a frame, content is often organized to include facts, figures, and/or narratives
• The organization is targeted to specifically motivate audiences to engage in activities
Previous Research
• Environmentally-framed videos had little effect on intent to engage in good fertilizer practices
• Social- and personal-framed print-based messages had the strongest influence on attitude and perceived ability to engage in irrigation conservation practices
The Treatments
The Treatments
The Treatments
The Study
• Participants received one of six (6) different treatments, or none (the control) ~ approx. 500/group
• Treatments had to be viewed for ten (10) seconds before being able to proceed
• Participants were then asked a series of questions about perceptions and behaviors regarding water conservation
The Study
Following the Treatment, measured; • Interest in Engaging with Extension• Interest in Learning about Specific Water Topics
• Intent to Engage in Specific Landscape Water Conservation Actions
• Intent to Engage in Other Water Protection Actions
The Audience
• 3,595 responses• Must be a Florida resident at least 18 years old
• There were no screening questions about a person’s prior interest in water conservation
The Results
0%
20%
40%
60%
Control Facts Stories
Agree
NDNA
Disagree
What does this mean?
The only statistically significant finding here was that respondents were more likely to “neither disagree nor agree” if they received a story treatment.
Engaging with my local Extension office’s social media sites to learn more about protecting water resources
The Results
0%
20%
40%
60%
Control Facts Stories
Agree
NDNA
Disagree
What does this mean?
Participants that received a story treatment were more inclined to “NDNA” and less likely to “disagree” with visiting their local Extension office.
Visiting local Extension office to learn about protecting water
The Results
0%
20%
40%
60%
Control Facts Stories
Agree
NDNA
Disagree
What does this mean?
Participants that received a fact treatment were more likely to “agree.” Participants received either treatment were less likely to “disagree.”
Reading an Extension fact sheet to learn more about protecting water resources
The Results
What does this mean?
Participants that received a story treatment were more likely to want to learn about the topic of focus. Highlights the importance of selecting relevant messages.
When asked about interest in learning about water-related topics, there was:• Increase in interest in learning about landscape water conservation practices among those who received the story treatment
• Increase in interest in learning about water restrictions, private well protection, and septic system management among those who received the fact treatment
• A lack of change in nearly every topic
The Results
0%
20%
40%
60%
Control Facts Stories
Likely
Undecided
Unlikely
What does this mean?
Participants that received a story treatment were more likely to take action. Participants received either treatment were less “unlikely” to take this action.
Buy a specialty license plate that supports water protection efforts
The Results
0%
20%
40%
60%
Control Facts Stories
Likely
Undecided
Unlikely
What does this mean?
Participants that received a story treatment were more “likely” to take action.
Donate to an organization that protects water
The Results
What does this mean?
Single view of messages are not going to elicit behavior change.
No influence on actual water conservation behavioral intent
Conc
lusi
ons
• More likely to take action by contributing money (buying license plates, donating to
organizations)
• More interested in learning about irrigation practices that save water
Those that received “story” treatments…
• More likely to agree about reading an Extension fact sheet
Those that received “fact” treatments…
Conc
lusi
ons
treatment and interest in engaging with extensions social media, visiting a local office, or reading a fact sheet.
• Having the facts is important!
• Over time, this line of research may shed light into how we can best present outcomes and impacts for various audiences.
• There is not enough influence to cause behavior change, but a single treatment could lead to future action that could cause behavior change.
• Are people more compelled to take action on behalf of the state or on behalf of a household in the community?
• We are currently using Facebook split testing to determine if a certain message resonates with audiences better when receiving the treatment through social media
We thank the Center for Landscape Conservation and Ecology for supporting this research.
Thank you!
Laura Warner, [email protected]@Laura_A_WarnerJamie Loizzo, Ph.D.
[email protected]@jamieloizzo Jarred
[email protected]@jshellhouse
